Generally, when a person uses a toothbrush, the person cleans the toothbrush after every use. For example, once the person has completed brushing his or her teeth, the person rinses the toothbrush with water and then places the toothbrush on a countertop or a toothbrush holder in the bathroom. However, there may be microbes, which are microscopic living organisms such as bacteria, fungi, protozoa, or viruses, that are located on the countertop and/or on the toothbrush holder. Furthermore, simply rinsing the bristles of the toothbrush does sanitize the bristles of the toothbrush, and as a result, microbes may end up or remain on the bristles of the toothbrush, thus potentially negatively affecting the hygiene of the person.
Furthermore, when a person travels with a toothbrush, the person may place the toothbrush on the countertop of a hotel room or place the toothbrush in the travel kit, for example. The countertop in a bathroom of the hotel room is known to host microorganisms. Also, a travel kit that is not properly sanitized on a regular basis may host microorganisms. Thus, travel may particularly affect the hygiene of the toothbrush.
Currently, there are devices that attempt to prevent microbes from contacting the bristles. For example, a toothbrush may include a cap that covers the bristles after every use. However, the use of a cap does not effectively prevent microbes from contacting the bristles of the toothbrush. Without sanitizing the bristles of the toothbrush using proper measures, microbes cannot be effectively destroyed. Also, repeated use of the cap without proper sanitization causes the bristles to carry microbes. Thus, it may be beneficial to employ a more effective sanitization mechanism that reduces or eliminates microbes from a toothbrush, and in particular, the bristles of the toothbrush.